Season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then coat lightly in a flour. Heat the oil in a large ovenproof pot, and, in batches, brown the chicken on both sides over a high heat. Remove the chicken, and set aside.

Reduce the heat, add the onions and bacon, and cook for about 5-8 minutes until they are golden tinged. Add the garlic, then sprinkle in the plain flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring to prevent sticking. Add the mushrooms, bay leaves, redcurrant sauce and orange zest with some orange juice, then pour in the red wine and stock, and season with salt and pepper.

Bring to the boil, and then return the chicken to the casserole dish, making sure it is well covered with the liquid. Put on the lid, and cook in the oven for 60-75 minutes.

While the casserole is cooking, prepare the dumplings. Put the self-raising flour, mustard and butter in a food processor, and blitz to a crumb consistency. Add the thyme, parsley and eggs, and salt and pepper. Remove the casserole from the oven, and pop the dumplings on top. Place the lid back on and return to the oven for a further 20 minutes, until the dumplings have puffed up. Spoon the chicken and sauce on to six plates, and top each with a dumpling.

And there you have it, Claire Allen’s Coq Au Vin with Dumplings. For more info on Claire, check out her website here.